ZBrush for Concept Artists Vol 2
Ben Mauro’s second guide to ZBrush in concept art is so complete that you might not need the first part.
hange has come to the field of concept art. In this video series, Ben Mauro shows how 3D packages such as ZBrush help him to deliver the realism that art directors now ask him for, even at the character design stage. The first part (which we reviewed back in issue 99) showed Ben creating a prototypical bust for a creature design; in the second part, the design is expanded to the entire body.
CThere’s a degree of overlap between the two videos, with both showing the basics of ZBrush for newcomers, then blocking out the form, sculpting and refining detail, texture-painting and Photoshop postproduction. However, the extra length of this instalment (it’s over 90 minutes longer than the first) gives Ben room to explore other areas.
To give an example, there’s a particularly useful session where he uses ZBrush to change the creature’s pose from its initial neutral stance to one that brings out its personality. Taking this two-step approach saves time because you can do more sculpting with the symmetry function activated, which ensures that the anatomy is properly thought out.
The audio suffers from the same affliction as the first part, noticeably switching between a live workshop and a later recorded session. But on the upside, the edits are less frequent than last time, making this a more enjoyable experience. There’s also more scope for questions from the audience, which always yield some great insights.
If you’re looking for a broad overview of ZBrush’s role in concept art, this is complete enough to make the first part redundant – although anyone looking to dig deeper will still appreciate the earlier video’s emphasis on character design. For most viewers, however, this is a pretty definitive exploration of its topic, from an artist who really knows his stuff.